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Activity

2014 ITRI Laureate Annual Meeting
Encouraging Innovation and Entrepreneurship to Fuel Industry Upgrade

The 2014 Annual Meeting of ITRI Laureates was held in December to discuss Taiwan’s industrial restructuring policies and practices. Participating laureates concluded that the pinnacle of the industrial upgrade is held within the concept of Key Enabling Competence (KEC).

The 2014 ITRI Laureates Annual Meeting discusses Taiwan’s industrial restructuring policies and practices.

The 2014 ITRI Laureates Annual Meeting discusses Taiwan’s industrial restructuring policies and practices.

The KEC Strategy

ITRI Laureates stressed that KEC is a great and systematic way of thinking used to design products and services that takes into account consumer value, technological breakthroughs, and business models. This method of thinking allows continual consumer interaction and product revision which helps break away from OEM and ODM industry structures.

Three key points stem from the discussion of the KEC:
Dr. Stan Shih

To Encourage Startups

As for industry restructuring efforts, Dr. Stan Shih believes that the nation needs a new system for encouraging startups. This new scheme must incorporate different ministries, be planned on a national level, and be led by the industry.


Dr. Morris Chang

Dr. Morris Chang expressed that it is not easy for large corporations to improve and upgrade due to the sheer amount of human resources and talent it takes. However, he believes that Taiwan’s industry has a chance by vigorously encouraging entrepreneurship; for example, if ten thousand startups are born in ten years, even if only a small fraction of them succeed in growing into mature companies, this will still be enough force to grow and upgrade Taiwan’s industry.

ITRI has actively encouraged innovative entrepreneurship. Dr. Ching-Yen Tsay stated that in the past three years, ITRI has nurtured 30 startups, and that our business environment has changed. In the past, it was difficult for entrepreneurs to obtain the needed funding. However, the 14 startups established in ITRI in 2014 were able to secure funding from ten venture capitalists, three banks, and six angel investors. Tsay further suggested that ITRI Laureates should play the roles of mentors in assisting startup efforts.

The meeting was hosted by iD SoftCapital Group Chairman Stan Shih. Attending laureates included Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) Chairman Morris Chang, Delta Electronics Founder and Honorary Chairman Bruce Cheng, ASUSTeK Computer Chairman Jonney Shih, Chang Chun Group Chairman Suhon Lin, Epistar Chairman Biing-Jye Lee, Quanta Computer Chairman Barry Lam, Gloria Material Technology Corp. (GMTC) Chairman Robert Chen, Chang Chun Group Vice Chairman Shien-Chang Chen, TSMC Vice President of Research & Development Burn J. Lin, ITRI Advanced Research Advisory Committee Honorary Chairman Hwa-Nien Yu, and Academia Sinica Academician Eric G. Lean. This meeting focused on the discussion of the utilization of the KEC in contributing to the industry paradigm shift, the establishment of a hardware- and software-integrated service industry, and ITRI’s role in the overall transition of Taiwan’s industrial structure.

About ITRI Laureates

Since 2012, ITRI has established the ITRI Laureate distinction to recognize those who have made significant contributions to the promotion and development of Taiwan’s technology industry, and to the improvement of the quality of life in Taiwan. As of 2014, 17 distinguished ITRI Laureates have been selected.

2014 Laureates
Shien-Chang Chen, Chang Chun Group Vice Chairman
Simon M. Sze, NCTU Honorary Chair Professor
Hwa-Nien Yu, ITRI Advanced Research Advisory Committee Honorary Chairman
Eric G. Lean, Academia Sinica Academician
Lewis Terman, former IEEE President and IBM Emeritus Researcher
2013 Laureates
Barry Lam, Quanta Computer Chairman
Chih-Yuan Lu, Macronix President
Burn J. Lin, TSMC Vice President of Research & Development
Robert Chen, Gloria Material Technology Corp. Chairman & CEO
2012 Laureates
Morris Chang, TSMC Chairman
Stan Shih, iD SoftCapital Group Chairman
Ding-Hua Hu, Chien-Pang Venture Capital Corp. Chairman
Bruce Cheng, Delta Electronics Founder and Honorary Chairman
Jonney Shih, ASUSTeK Computer Chairman
Suhon Lin, Chang Chun Group Chairman
Ming-Kai Tsai, MediaTek Chairman & CEO
Biing-Jye Lee, Epistar Chairman